Hectic Night
by Klutzygirl33
Summary: Future fic. When Peter and Elizabeth go out for the night, Neal baby-sits their twin daughters.


**Disclaimer**: I don't own White Collar and never will. No copyright infringement intended.

**Author's Note**: I have this image of Peter and Elizabeth's eventual kids having Neal wrapped around their fingers. The story was born out of that, because I think Neal would spoil their kids rotten.

* * *

Neal showed up at the Burkes' house around 4:15. Not scheduled to leave until 5:00, the grateful Peter and Elizabeth served Neal dinner for arriving early.

"Uncle Neal, what are we doing today?" asked six year old Isabelle. She loved mostly all of his plans.

"We should watch a movie," declared Amelia. The six year old wanted to become an actress someday. Movies held her attention.

"No clue about what we're doing today, and maybe we can watch a movie." Neal continued to eat his food. He hoped the girls fell asleep early tonight.

"Daddy and I are leaving now," Elizabeth informed her daughters around 5:00. She hated leaving them sometimes. Neal baby-sat well, though.

"Be good for Uncle Neal." Peter knew his girls, however. Isabelle and Amelia always tired their uncle out. Neal usually fell asleep before he and Elizabeth returned.

"We will," Amelia promised. She and Isabelle exchanged a look. Not one of the adults noticed the crossed fingers behind the girls' backs.

Elizabeth and Peter hugged their daughters before leaving. The sensitive Isabelle cried until Neal and Amelia calmed her down.

"Mommy and Daddy will be back soon. At least you have Mia and me until then." Neal hated when they cried. It tore at him too much. He rubbed Isabelle's back as the sobs slowed down.

"Will you color with us?" the now calmed down Isabelle questioned shortly afterwards. She loved coloring books. Actually, coloring in general interested her. Neal hoped she became an artist someday.

"Of course I will." Neal allowed them to pull him towards the playroom. He, Isabelle, and Amelia started coloring upon finding the hidden coloring books.

"I'll draw better than both of you," Amelia taunted.

"You sure you can beat me, Princess Amelia?" Neal nicknamed her that almost immediately after meeting the twins for the first time.

Amelia nodded. "I can definitely beat you, Uncle Neal." She furiously started coloring.

Neal finished coloring first, but Isabelle completed her project next. "You're never going to beat me, Mia." The confident six year old hoped her twin lost.

One coloring bored the girls (and Neal won every single time), they moved onto something else. "Let's play tea party." Amelia loved that game.

"Maybe later, Mia." Neal hated the game, though. He prayed for something to distract Amelia and Isabelle.

"Please. We'll even let you serve the tea." Isabelle stared at her uncle woefully.

Neal broke in less than two minutes. "You win, Princess Isabelle and Princess Amelia." He loved these girls too much to refuse them. Elizabeth taunted he and Peter over their inability to say no to them.

"Let's play dress up too!" Amelia squealed. She dragged Neil over to the toy chest filled with clothes that Elizabeth hated and let them keep.

Isabelle giggled when Neal resisted wearing a dress. "Please put this dress on, Uncle Neal. You'll look really pretty."

Neal sighed and reluctantly dressed up. He hoped that no one developed pictures of him in a dress. Hiding his humiliation from the girls, he sat down on a tiny chair. "You two better be happy and grateful about this."

"We are," chirped Amelia. She laughed and ran off to fill her toy teapot with water. Isabelle stayed next to her uncle and continued giggling at him.

Amelia returned quickly and poured "tea" in Neal's cup. He gulped it down quickly, ignoring Amelia and Isabelle's glares.

"Give him some more," Isabelle ordered. Amelia listened and poured him some more.

"The tea is so good." Neal played along, hoping they believed him. Tea party sucked, but at least this thrilled the twins.

Boredom set in quickly. Abandoning the tea party, the girls decided to play house. Amelia and Isabelle fought over their roles in the game. "Uncle Neal is the daddy. I want to be the mommy. You can be our daddy," Amelia argued. These fights always occurred during the game of house.

"I want to be the mommy!" Isabelle screeched. Neal and Amelia winced at the sheer volume of her voice.

"Take turns," Neal suggested, trying to stop the fight. He backed off upon receiving dual glares. The girls scared him sometimes.

The three played house for an hour. Amelia played the role of mommy for half an hour until Isabelle took over the role. Afterwards, they wanted to play something else. "Movie?" asked a hopeful Amelia.

"It's almost time for bed," Neal reminded them. He loved their bedtime. Peace and quiet always arrived after they fell asleep.

"We can still watch one movie," Isabelle tried. She smiled tiredly up at him.

Neal agreed. He popped in a children's movie they all agreed on and laid down on the couch. Amelia viewed the previews happily. Isabelle climbed up on the couch and burrowed herself in Neal's chest. The two cuddled.

When Peter and Elizabeth returned home, they found Neal and Isabelle sleeping on the couch. The two passed out only half an hour in the movie. The still awake Amelia smiled happily at her parents.

"Why aren't you in bed?" questioned Elizabeth. She turned off the movie, careful not to wake Neal and Isabelle.

Amelia shrugged. "I wasn't tired, Mommy." She hated bedtime. That's why she left her uncle and sister alone while they slept.

"You need to go to bed, Amelia Kathryn Burke." Elizabeth refused to budge on her daughters' bedtime. Their set bedtime only changed sometimes.

Peter picked up Isabelle as Amelia headed to their bedroom. She never stirred, but Neal woke up. "Go back to sleep, Neal." He placed a blanket over the ex-con, who listened and quickly fell asleep. He smiled at him.

Peter tucked both Isabelle and Amelia in. Amelia asked for a story, so Peter read her a short one. Isabelle continued to sleep. After he finished reading, Peter checked in on Neal. Then he walked into his and Elizabeth's bedroom. "They're all asleep," he told his wife.

Neal's baby-sitting duties always ended up this way. He fell asleep early because Isabelle and Amelia exhausted him. He never minded, though.

Hectic nights ruled the Burkes' and Neal's lives on a daily basis.


End file.
